Connect Denver Foundation

From 2013-2017, ExecConnect was working in partnership with the North Denver Cornerstone Collaborative. ExecConnect/Connect Denver is still actively and organically fundraising for projects within GES.

Connect Denver Foundation Harnessing the power of community partnerships for a sustainable futureAn ExecConnect and North Denver Cornerstone Collaborative Partnership

Overview Denver’s Corridor of Opportunity is the City’s next frontier and has the potential to be a dominate road to progress for Denver, the northern Front Range communities and the State – helping to provide an economic resurgence, community reinvestment, improved multi-modal mobility, ecological restoration and more. This 23-mile stretch linking Denver Union Station (DUS), a re-imagined Brighton Blvd as the gateway into downtown, a revitalized National Western Center Complex as a year-round destination and Denver International Airport (DIA) with its expanding global reach via CDOT’s modernized I-70 interstate highway project and RTD’s new east community line with nine transit stops represents a unique set of unsurpassed synergies. When aligned through the efforts of the NDCC and DIA’s Aerotropolis, we can create a dynamic series of strategically linked residential and commercial neighborhoods to drive economic and social mobility for decades to come.

About Us Connect Denver Foundation is set up as an individual fund and is governed by a group of local executives, community leaders and business owners known as ExecConnect, which has been officially a 501c3 since June 2011. The mission of ExecConnect is to harness the energy of the group’s valued relationships and related knowledge to further the prosperity of the community.

Guiding PrinciplesEach member of the Connect Denver Foundation will share in the City’s vision to “answer the call” toward a more connected, vibrant and sustainable city to create a world-class city where everyone truly matters. In this case, the “CORRIDOR” goes beyond describing a physical place, but also defines a belief system that all network participants subscribe to.

Commitment: a commitment to the Globeville, Elyria and Swansea neighborhoods to reconnect them to the rest of the City and to help them re-emerge as valued members of Denver and the greater Front Range. Opportunity: a willingness to harness this moment in time to make a difference in our community so that all of Denver’s residents can share in the blessings of our great city and state.Respect: an appreciation for the importance of valuing a broad range of opinions, beliefs and experiences.Responsibility: a sense of personal and shared accountability to continually make our city a better place to live, work and play.Investment: a desire to give of our time, money and energy toward something that is bigger than ourselves.Diversity: a belief in honoring and celebrating cultural heritage.Outcomes: an impatience toward action.Renewal: a belief in our capacity to continually remake ourselves, our community’s and our city toward even greater possibilities.

The Need for Public/Private Partnerships These exciting possibilities will require a wide range of supports. No one entity can successfully plan or implement the breadth of complex physical and social improvements needed in Globeville, Elyria and Swansea or the broader opportunities that will emerge along the Corridor of Opportunity. As a key first step, the City in collaboration with civic, business and community leaders are establishing a variety of structures and tools to accomplish the bold vision for the area.

Establishing “Connect Denver Foundation” Given the scope, scale and extended timeframe to complete these improvements, the City has seeked the creation of “Connect Denver Foundation” to harness civic engagement through a series of new networks with a belief in actionable outcomes. The ultimate goal for Connect Denver Foundation is to help the North Denver Cornerstone Collaborative to be successful through a very methodical way of thinking and calculated “singles” and “homeruns” throughout this journey. Connect Denver Foundation will focus its efforts primarily on the economic opportunities at hand. Connect Denver Foundation will attend many of the community meetings hosted by the North Denver Cornerstone Collaborative at and around the Corridor of Opportunity to better understand the challenges and opportunities each area may and will face. It will then ultimately determine the best uses of the fund by three simple guiding principles: Community Engagement, Strategic Planning and Aligned Resources.